Little bit late to the party on this one (this logo was released December 15 and I sorta neglected it courtesy the Christmas and New Year hubbub) but despite my tardiness, the UEFA Euro 2012 scoccer logo is still worth a mention and a looksee. So let’s.

Developed by Portuguese design group Brandia Central, the design will represent the 14th UEFA European Football (soccer) Championship, scheduled to be held in Poland and Ukraine in July 2012. For what it’s worth, this is only the third time that the championship hosted jointly by two countries, a fact that was an integral factor in the creation of the logo. And while the announcement was ignored in North America (we tend to like the other version of football), the championships are an awfully big deal in Europe, with a predicted 1.4 millions fans taking in the matches at the various stadiums and the TV coverage broadcast to 200 markets. From a personal POV, I absolutely love the logo (while many others are decrying its complexity) and think the development video (below) to be brilliant – a must-see for any graphic designer, particularly those interested in the logo design niche. It explains, in exquisite graphic detail, the thought processes behind the logo; concept, execution and color choices. If only more logo design projects were this thought out.

There’s a lot going on in this logo, both stylistically and symbolically, but there’s not one piece of the design that doesn’t have a reason for being there. Typically, and despite being quite cool with illustrative logos, I’m not a big fan of extraneous War-and-Peace extravaganzas, but I’m more than willing to make an exception here. The font work is lovely too.

Logo described as “a bunch of flowers” and “too girly”

Will the design resonate with soccer fans? Who knows. Reception has been mixed. “Too girly” seems to be one of the main beefs, with some fans carping that a “bunch of flowers” has no place in the presumably masculine world of European soccer. Some graphic designers were quick to jump on the logo, criticizing as “too complex” with some claiming that the logo wouldn’t effectively convert to black and white (not true – see below).

I’m glad to see sports organizations pushing the envelope back a bit (I think we can all agree that this is a much better example of an unorthodox sports logo than the arguably disastrous London Olympics logo trotted out a few years back). Also, and as mentioned earlier, I tend to lean towards more illustrative logos myself so perhaps I’m a little biased on what is, and isn’t effective for this particular design. What about you? You like or no like? Too complex or a decent visual exercise? Have at it in the comment section if you’re so inclined.

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